FDA & Prescription Drugs

• Avandia scare worries diabetes patients

  Staff Writer | May 25, 2007 9:41 AM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  A story from Savannah/Hilton Head's channel 3 WSAV says a man who has been taking Avandia for four years fears the drug has worsened his heart condition and risk for heart attack.The recent report published in medical journal detailing the increased heart attack risks associated with use of Avandia, a popular medication for patients with Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of the disease.The...

• Avandia increases heart risks, FDA says

  Staff Writer | May 25, 2007 9:26 AM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  The Washington Post reports that popular diabetes drug Avandia has been shown to increase heart risks, according to an FDA study and a report published in a medical journal.The study confirms that 60,000 to 100,000 reported heart attacks from Avandia users may be linked to the drug, which has been on the market for 8 years.Avandia's manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline PLC, a British company, has sold...

• Judge approves $64 million Paxil settlement

  Staff Writer | April 28, 2007 4:40 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  The world's second largest drug manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline, will pay nearly $64 million to settle claims from parents of minor patients who were taking antidepressant drug Paxil.The plaintiffs claim that the company provided misleading information about giving Paxil to minors, not adequately warning about possible suicidal side effects and withdrawal symptoms. ``The settlement was agreed upon...

• GlaxoSmithKline to settle over Paxil lawsuits

  Staff Writer | April 27, 2007 4:50 PM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  A judge said this week he plans to approve a $64 million settlement between GlaxoSmithKline and parents of minors who took the defective drug without knowing the possible side effects, including suicidal thoughts and withdrawal symptoms, among others. The plaintiffs of the class action lawsuit against the second largest drug maker in the world claim that the company did not adequately warn...

• Epilepsy drug associated with mental retardation

  Staff Writer | April 04, 2007 3:32 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  A story from The New York Times details a new study that shows an increased risk of mental retardation in children who were exposed to epilepsy drug Depakote prenatally. The authors of the study presented their research at the American Academy of Neurology's annual meeting this year.Toddlers who had been exposed in the womb to the drug Depakote, from Abbott Laboratories, scored seven to eight...

• Narcotic overdose with Patient Controlled Analgesics (PCAs)

  Staff Writer | March 12, 2007 10:59 AM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  Thomas A. Sharon, R.N., M.P.H. points out the hazards of using Patient Controlled Analgesics (PCAs) in hospitals and other health care facilities. He says that much of the information available to patients about the supposed safety of PCAs is misleading. On his Forensicare Blog, Sharon reveals the actual dangers and possible side effects patients may experience due to accidental narcotic...

• Group petitions to FDA to ban some oral contraceptives

  Staff Writer | February 23, 2007 3:45 PM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  Public Citizen, a nonprofit national public interest organization, sent a petition to the FDA earlier this month urging them to ban third generation oral contraceptives that increase the risk of blood clots (venous thrombosis) and death.The petition specifically requests the following:Public Citizen, representing more than 100,000 consumers nationwide, hereby petitions the Food and Drug...

• Merck abandons vaccine campaign

  Staff Writer | February 21, 2007 2:26 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  Drug manufacturer Merck & Co. released a new vaccine to prevent cervical cancer called Gardasil, which actually vaccinates against HPV or the herpes virus, a sexually transmitted disease that causes cervical cancer. According to the Associated Press, Merck has been quietly pushing a campaign through a third party to encourage schools to require vaccination among 11- and 12-year-old girls....

• Lamictal may cause birth defects

  Staff Writer | February 06, 2007 9:21 AM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  An announcement from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in September 2006, warned that Lamictal (lamotrigine), a drug used to treat seizures and depression, may cause birth defects. Specifically, if a patient is pregnant and taking Lamictal during her first trimester, birth defects such as cleft lip or cleft palate are more likely to occur.Findings from the NAAED (North American...

• Therapy better than pills to treat insomnia

  Staff Writer | February 01, 2007 10:33 AM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  An article in the January 2007 Worst Pills Best Pills Newsletter addresses new research showing that cognitive behavioral therapy may be more effective in treating insomnia than sleeping pills like Lunesta.Eszopiclone (Lunesta) is an extremely popular drug in the U.S. to treat insomnia, with more than three million prescriptions dispensed and sales exceeding $250 million in 2005. In Europe, a...